Biomarkers of oral subacute toxicity of deltamethrin in exposed male Albino rats.

Deltamethrin is one of the most effective pyrethroid compounds, widely employed in veterinary medicine, public health, and farming. Deltamethrin-triggered oxidative stress largely causes serious harm to an organism. Acute toxicity of this compound was extensively investigated, while less information is available on its oral sub-acute effects. This study assessed, in the male Albino rats, the effects of oral gavage of either 0.874 mg/kg (0.01 LD50) or 8.740 mg/kg (0.10 LD50) of deltamethrin for successive 14 days to investigate its effects on biomarkers and to detect the tissue injury in rats following subacute deltamethrin treatment. It was found that levels of glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, and catalase in the brain, kidney, and liver, alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and uric acid in serum, hematocrit, mean corpuscular volume (MCV), white blood cells (WBC)s, eosinophils, and basophils were significantly reduced compared with untreated rats. However, when rats were treated with deltamethrin for successive 14 days, alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activities in serum and the levels of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARs) in brain, kidney, and liver, red blood cell distribution width (RDW-CV), total protein, monocytes, and basophils and the ratios of neutrophils to lymphocytes, an aggregated marker of systemic inflammation and systemic immune inflammation indexes, significantly increased compared with the control group. Histologic lesions were observed in the liver, kidney, brain, testis, and epidemies in rats exposed to subacute deltamethrin for 14 days, and most tissues of rats treated with 0.10 LD50 of deltamethrin were more affected than those treated with 0.01 LD50. These findings strongly suggest that subacute exposure to deltamethrin caused significant systemic toxicity through oxidative stress resulting in biochemical and histological changes in the studied tissues. These findings highlight the potential harmful effects of deltamethrin and emphasize the importance of understanding the subacute effects of this compound, particularly in the context of veterinary medicine, public health, and farming.

Evaluation of biochemical, hematological, and genotoxic parameters in mice exposed to individual and combined ethoprophos and cadmium.

Environmental contamination by complex mixtures of pesticides and metals is a major health problem in agriculture and industry. In real life scenarios, we are exposed to mixtures of chemicals rather than single chemicals, and therefore it is critical to assess their toxicity. The current work was conducted to assess the toxic effects of a low dose (2% median lethal dose) of ethoprophos (Etho, 0.16 mg kg-1 bw), and cadmium (Cd, 0.63 mg kg-1 bw); each alone or in combination on hematological, biochemical, and genotoxic parameters in male mice for one or four weeks. The tested toxicants resulted in a decline in body and organs weights, the most hematological indices, acetylcholine esterase activity, and the total protein content, while they significantly increased liver and kidney function parameters. Furthermore, they increased the mitotic index (MI), number of abnormal sperms, and chromosomes. In conclusion, Etho and Cd induce deleterious effects on all tested parameters in male mice which reflect more obvious impacts when both combined, particularly after 28 days of exposure. However, further research is needed to confirm toxicokinetic or toxicodynamic interactions between these two toxic compounds in the organisms.

Estimated daily intake of epichlorohydrin and certain heavy metals of bagged and loose black teas.

This study aimed to determine the levels of epichlorohydrin (ECH) and some metals in 3 brands of bagged and loose black teas which are widely marketed in Alexandria markets, Egypt, and estimate the acceptable daily intake as a safety indicator. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry results revealed that ECH levels significantly differed between the tested brands steeped for 2 min and tea bags contained higher levels than in loose teas and the levels increased by increasing the steep time. These levels of ECH in all the tested brands either in tea bags or loose teas were higher than the guideline value of 0.10 µg/L. Also, the results illustrated that the adding of sucrose or washing of bags with deionized water for 1 min significantly decreased the levels of ECH. In addition, inductively coupled plasma optic emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) results illustrated that the levels of Al, Pb, and Cd were too low in infusions compared to the established guidelines. Because of the high consumption of tea in Alexanria city, Egypt, it is necessary to determine the contribution of tea to the daily dietary intake of ECH, Al, Pb and Cd. In case of the bagged teas, the calculated daily intake of ECH was on average about 55.37 times greater than that in loose teas. The consumption of both bagged and loose teas infusion could not pose a risk for population as the health hazard index was < 1. It can be concluded that consumers who prefer to use tea bags should rinse these bags before preparing the tea brewer, and do not increase the steeping time to more than 2 min.

Sensory processing patterns affect headache severity among adolescents with migraine.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the relationship between pain catastrophizing level, sensory processing patterns, and headache severity among adolescents with episodic migraine. BACKGROUND: Catastrophizing about pain is a critical variable in how we understand adjustment to pain and has a unique contribution in predicting pain intensity. Recent reports found that migraine is also related to enhanced sensory sensitivity. However, the relationship between pain severity, pain catastrophizing level and sensory sensitivity requires greater study especially among adolescents. METHODS: Participants were 92 adolescents aged 13-18 years, 40 with episodic migraine and 52 healthy controls. The migraine patients were prospectively recruited from outpatient pediatric neurology clinics. All participants completed the Adolescent/Adult Sensory Profile (AASP), and the Pain Catastrophizing Scale for children (PCS-ch). The migraine groups also completed the PedMIDAS, which measures Headache related disability. RESULTS: Adolescents with migraine had significantly lower tendency to seek sensory input than healthy controls. Elevated rumination and helplessness correlated with higher migraine pain severity. Tendency to avoid sensory input predicted the migraine related disability level. They also significantly higher pain catastrophizing level than healthy controls, as seen in enhanced rumination (p ≤ 0.001) and helplessness (p ≤ 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Sensory processing difficulties are common among adolescents with episodic migraine. Sensory avoidance may be related to pain experience, and pain catastrophizing and disability level. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN ISRCTN73824458. Registered 28 September 2014. retrospectively registered.

Remediation of lead and cadmium-contaminated soils.

The research was designated to study the ability of plants to bio-accumulate, translocate and remove the heavy metals, lead and cadmium from contaminated soil. The herbal plant ryegrass, Lolium multiflorum was investigated as a bio-accumulator plant for these metals. The translocation of these heavy metals in the herbal plant was compared considering root to shoot transport and redistribution of metals in the root and shoot system. The trace metal contents from root and shoot parts were determined using atomic absorption spectrometer. The results showed that the percent of lead and cadmium transferred to ryegrass plant were averaged as 51.39, and 74.57%, respectively, while those remained in the soil were averaged as 48.61 and 25.43% following 60 days of treatment. The soil-plant transfer index in root and shoot system of ryegrass was found to be 0.32 and 0.20 for lead, and 0.50 and 0.25 for cadmium. These findings indicated that the herbal plant ryegrass, Lolium multiflorum is a good accumulator for cadmium than lead. The soil-plant transfer factor (the conc. of heavy metal in plant to the conc. in soil) indicated that the mechanism of soil remedy using the investigated plant is phytoextraction where the amounts of heavy metals transferred by plant roots into the above ground portions were higher than that remained in the soil. The method offers green technology solution for the contamination problem since it is effective technology with minimal impact on the environment and can be easily used for soil remedy.

Human Health Risk of Dietary Intake of Some Organochlorine Pesticide Residues in Camels Slaughtered in the Districts of Al-Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia.

Organochlorine residues were detected in 54/200 of muscles and 55/200 of livers of camels slaughtered in different districts of Al-Qassim region, Saudi Arabia, by using GC/MS analysis. The ΣDDT residues (Σ-DDT=p,p'-DDT+p,p'-DDE+p,p'-DDD+p,p'-DDA) in muscles and livers were the most frequent. The levels and distribution of residues varied with location. Al-Qassim region population's average estimated daily intake (EDI) was between 0.0 and 12.74 µg/kg body weight/day, and the hazard index [EDI/acceptable daily intake (ADI)] was higher than unity for ΣDDT and lindane in some samples. The intakes were much higher than the ADIs in some districts of Al-Qassim region, and the exposure level of all tested residues was high enough to produce health risk, suggesting the need for regular monitoring programs for pesticide residues in camel meat at the national level to protect consumers' health.

Production of date palm fruits free of acaricides residues by ozone technology as post-harvest treatment.

Distilled water and ozonated water as postharvest wash treatments for 15-60 min as dipping times were tested to remove two acaricides namely, dicofol and amitraz from different varieties of date fruits. Recovered amount of the acaricides was extracted using solid phase extraction (SPE) and then analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Dicofol removal percentages in the presence of ozone increased in the order of Nabtet Aly > Nabout Seif > Khalas > Sakay, while amitraz removal increased in the order of Nabtet Aly > Nabout Seif > Sakay > Khalas, respectively, and the percentages of residues on date fruits depended on the dipping time. Kinetic studies revealed that dicofol and amitraz were easily removable from date fruits treated with ozonated water. Ozone-treated date palm fruits were not associated with significant changes in antioxidant capacity, and phenolic and sugar contents. Due to the large amount of dates consumed by Saudi residents, a higher risk of exposure to pesticides, especially in children and other vulnerable individuals may occur and the search for safety methods to remove pesticides with negligible residual deposits has always been preferred. Therefore, the present study validated that ozone technology as wash treatments is safe and promising processes for the removal of acaricides from date fruits surface under domestic conditions to reduce the impact over consumer's health.

Safety methods for chlorpyrifos removal from date fruits and its relation with sugars, phenolics and antioxidant capacity of fruits.

The effectiveness of different postharvest wash treatments at two levels (10 and 20 g/l) for different dipping times was determined to remove chlorpyrifos from date fruits treated at concentration of 2 mg/l. The recovered amount of chlorpyrifos was extracted based on the solid phase extraction (SPE) method and then analyzed by gas chromatography with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The results demonstrate that the removal of chlorpyrifos increased in the order of acetic acid (AA)> citric acid (CA)> hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)> potassium permanganate (KMnO4)> running water (H2O), and the percent of pesticide residue on date fruits depended on the concentration of tested washing treatments and dipping time without the formation of the toxic by-product, chlorpyrifos-oxon. Kinetic studies revealed that chlorpyrifos was found to be more easily removable from date fruits treated with the tested chemical solutions with t1/2 values of 12-29 min compared with roughly 53 min in case of running water. The impact of these washing treatments on quality of date fruits illustrated that all treatments exerted a little negative effect on total sugars content but H2O2 and KMnO4 at level of 2 % had more drastic effect. Whereas, running water, 10 and 20 g/l CA caused significant increases in total phenolic contents, during all the tested contact times compared with control. Except the insignificant effect of KMnO4 treatments, antioxidant capacity of date fruits tended to increase in all wash treatments, when the contact times were 5 or 15 min.

Biomarkers of imidacloprid toxicity in Japanese quail, Coturnix coturnix japonica.

The in vivo effect of the oral sublethal doses of 3.014 mg kg-1 of IMI (1/25 LD50) for 1, 7, 14, and 28 days every other day on Japanese quail was investigated. The results revealed that certain biomarkers in the selected tissues of the quail such as acetylcholinesterase (AChE), butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE), aminotransaminases (alanine aminotransferase, ALT, and aspartate aminotransaminase, AST), phosphatases (acid phosphatase, ACP, and alkaline phosphatase, ALP), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), adenosine-triphosphatase (ATPase), glutathione-S-transferase (GST), lipid peroxidation (LPO), and blood glucose showed significant inductions, while significant reductions in the levels of glutathione-reduced (GSH), deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), and ribonucleic acid (RNA) were noticed. In this study, the molecular mechanisms of the toxic effects of imidacloprid on quails were elucidated regarding neurotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, oxidative stress, lipid peroxidation, antioxidant activity, and genotoxicity. Because IMI induced alterations in the levels of these biomarkers in Japanese quail; therefore, Japanese quail as a wild avian can be used as a suite bioindicator to detect imidacloprid toxicity.

Concentrations of trace elements [corrected] and organochlorines in Mutton bird (Puffinus griseus).

The Sooty Shearwater (Puffinus griseus, commonly known as Mutton bird) is a migratory wild seabird, annually harvested for food by certain native groups in New Zealand and Australia and in many parts of the world. The concentrations of 22 elements and several organochlorine pesticides [2,2-bis(chlorophenyl)-1,1,1-trichloroethane (DDT), its derivatives dichlorodiphenyldichloroethene (DDE) and dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane (DDD), aldrin, chlordane, dicofol, lindane, and methoxychlor] in Mutton bird were determined over two consecutive years to evaluate its safety for human consumption. Twenty bird carcasses were purchased in each of 2007 and 2008 from a local source. No significant year effect (P>0.05) was found in the following nine trace elements: Al, As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Se. The concentrations of Hg, Li and Na were higher (P<0.05) in 2008 samples compared to 2007. The toxic trace elements (mg/kg wet weight) in all the samples were below the maximum residual level (MRL). The concentration of Fe, Ca and Se in Mutton bird was higher than that in domestic land animal meats reported in literature. The residual organochlorine concentrations were all below the recommended MRL. Thus Mutton bird meat is high in essential nutrient elements and of low toxicological risk. Due to active use of agrochemical in New Zealand, a monitoring program for contaminants in Mutton birds is recommended.

Effect of N-acetylcysteine on attenuation of chlropyrifos and its methyl analogue toxicity in male rats.

The attenuating effect of 150 mg/kg of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) against the oral administration of 7.88 and 202.07 mg/kg/day for 14 days of either chlropyrifos-ethyl (CPE-E) or chlropyrifos-methyl (CPF-M), respectively, in male rat was investigated using biochemical and genetic markers. Biomarkers such as acetylcholinesterase (AChE), butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE), paraoxonase (PON), adenosine 5'-triphosphatase (ATP-ase), glutathione-S-transferase (GST), catalase (CAT), glutathione reduced (GSH) in serum showed a significant decline in their levels, while calcium (Ca+2), cytochrome C reduction (CYC-R), lipid peroxidation (LPO), nitric oxide (NO) levels showed a significant increase in serum of treated rats. Regarding the genotoxic parameters, when rats are treated either with CPE-E or CPF-M, liver DNA, chromosomal aberration (CA), and micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes (MnPCE) significantly increased, while the mitotic index (MI) and polychromatic erythrocytes (PCE)/ normochromatic erythrocytes (NCE) ratio were significantly decreased. However, the administration of NAC following the intoxication of CPF-E or CPF-M attenuated the tested biochemical and genotoxic markers. It can be concluded that NAC can be used to ameliorate the toxicity of certain organophosphorus compounds such as CPF-E and CPF-M.

Iatrogenic Hypothermia during Hemodialysis Can Induce Serious Cardiac Arrhythmias in Diabetic Patient.

Cardiovascular diseases are the main cause of morbidity and mortality in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients. Cardiac arrhythmias are prevalent in patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD), however, dialysis treatment per se can be considered as an arrhythmogenic stimulus. Uremic patients are characterized by a "pro-arrhythmic substrate" because of the high prevalence of ischemic heart disease, left ventricular hypertrophy, and autonomic neuropathy. The incidence of hypothermia in HD patient is unknown. The severity of hypothermia correlated to cardiac arrhythmias. Here, we report a 50-year-old Saudi lady known case of long-standing diabetes mellitus with diabetic retinopathy, nephropathy and neuropathy, ESRD on HD, coronary artery disease developed transient third-degree heart block secondary to iatrogenic hypothermia during HD session, which was completely resolved after adjusting temperature of dialysis machine. To the best of our knowledge, the association of third-degree atrioventricular block and hypothermia induced by HD session has not been previously reported.

Role of biomarkers in the evaluation of cadmium and ethoprophos combination in male mice.

This work aimed to study the risk assessment procedures of a combination of single and repeated dose of the widely used pesticide, ethoprophos (Etho) and heavy metal cadmium (Cd), on the hematological, biochemical, reproduction and cytogenetic parameters in male mice. The results revealed that the sub-lethal dose (1/50 LD50) of the tested toxic substances (Etho and/or Cd) reduced the body and organ weights, the most hematological profile and the activity of acetylcholine esterase (AChE). The tested pollutants significantly increased the parameters of liver function, including aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT), as well as renal function tests, including creatinine and urea. In addition, they have deleterious effects on reproductive function tests by stimulating the number of sperm abnormalities (SA) and cytogenetic assays by increasing the frequency of chromosomal abnormalities (CA) and the mitotic index (MI). The overall results of this exploratory study suggest that the co-existence of the two tested compounds (Etho and Cd) had the propensity to cause a more pronounced effect than that of each compound alone on all the battery measured biomarkers, especially in the repeated treatment (14 doses) than that in the single one. Also, the combination of a range of simple and sensitive assays as endpoints gives a comprehensive picture and provides better insights to evaluate the potential effects of other commonly encountered environmental pollutants.

Sensory Processing Difficulties Correlate With Disease Severity and Quality of Life Among Children With Migraine.

Introduction: Headaches are common among children and about 80% of children reporting them. Migraine and tension type headaches are the most common primary headaches in children and the prevalence of migraine is about 8%. Accompanying sensory symptoms are common before, during and after migraine attacks. They may be a part of a wider symptom constellation called sensory processing disorder or difficulties (SPD). This includes both hyper or hypo sensitivity to sensations. However, the literature regarding sensory processing symptoms of children and youth with headaches as well as its interaction with child's emotional aspects and quality of life is scarce. Materials and Methods: One hundred and thirty-four children between the ages of 8 and 12 participated in this study. Fifty-four children (22 boys and 32 girls) with episodic migraine were prospectively recruited from pediatric neurological clinics during the years 2014-2017. The control group included 80 healthy children. Both groups completed a health and demographic questionnaire, headache assessment including Ped-MIDAS, Short Sensory Profile, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) for children, and the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory. Results: Children with migraine showed significantly higher prevalence of sensory processing difficulties and lower quality of life compared to healthy controls. Among children with migraine, sensory processing difficulties significantly correlated with lower quality of life. Headache-related disability and sensory processing difficulties predicted quality of life. Conclusion: The possible relationship between migraine and sensory processing disorder or difficulties stresses the need to screen for sensory processing difficulties among children with migraine and when found-refer to their impacts on children's daily function and quality of life.